Modern Parents Messy Kids

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On Being Stuck at Home with Sick Kids

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'Tis the season of the runny nose.  The worst part about this time of year isn't the sick kids, it's being trapped at home with little ones who are too contagious to be unleashed onto the world but still too spunky to stay in bed and sleep it off.  If you find yourself in that particularly frustrating position, you might want to check out my momtastic post, 10 Activities When Sickness Has You Stuck at Home.  Then, once you've adequately tuckered out the little guys, read this post, snuggle them … [Read more...]

St. Paddy’s Day Printables: Limerick Scavenger Hunt & Temporary Tattoos

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Unbelievably, tomorrow's the first day of March.  Despite my whining about the snow, it kind of caught me by surprise.  In fact, the only reason I noticed was because a few of my St. Paddy's Day projects from last year have started to re-surface on Pinterest.  That's yet another great thing about Pinterest, it's a spot-on barometer of what the masses want.  And if Leprechauns and rainbows are it - who am I to argue?   I'll have a few fresh projects this year as well, but today I wanted to … [Read more...]

Good Idea: Bring the Garden Inside

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I'm so over winter.  Seriously, I feel like we've done the cold and snow thing enough already - I'm jonesing to get outside with the kids and start growing stuff.  Judging by the hail that's currently pelting my backyard (and the snow that fell yesterday), Mother Nature does not share my sentiments. On to plan B then.  If we can't cultivate anything outside just yet (or at least attempt to cultivate - I've been cursed with a bit of a black thumb I'm afraid), then we'll do it in the kitchen … [Read more...]

Project Organize Your ENTIRE Life: Mega Cleaning Action Plan

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Today's the day, time for me to unleash one enormous post and time for you to finally make a cleaning schedule and get started down the path to a new life.  One in which you don't have to limit having people over to times when you know you'll have a few hours to frantically surface clean the whole place first (or is that just me?).  That's the goal anyway, and below is the action plan to help get you there.  So grab a cup of Jo, some pen and paper, and get comfy - we've got some work to … [Read more...]

Elsewhere

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photo via styleberry BLOGHappy Friday everyone!  I'm holed up in my home office furiously trying to make sense of all the cleaning schedule info. I've collected from everyone while the in-laws entertain my kids.  I hope to have the goods for you Monday or Tuesday of next week.  Until then, I wanted to share some of the things I've been talking about over at momtastic lately:First is this week's roundup of family friendly finds.  Doesn't that homemade baby food look divine?  It reminds me of … [Read more...]

We Need to Talk: Kids & Screen Time

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Not to be overly dramatic, but I read the most fascinating New York Times post the other day and it completely changed my thoughts on kids and screen time.  If you have kids, then you have surely been bombarded with the news that TV is not great for them.  Your pediatrician likely recommended nixing the boob tube completely until the age of 2 and keeping viewing to a limited amount after that.  And if that didn't sink in, you've probably run into at least one mom eager to share links between too … [Read more...]

Project Organize Your ENTIRE Life: DIY Cleaning Chart

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So this is kind of, OK totally, putting the cart before the horse but I got so excited about the concept of making a cleaning chart and actually having a clean house that I just couldn't wait any longer - ideas on how I wanted to make mine were literally keeping me up at night.  Plus, your comments lead me to believe that many of you are also moving ahead with your cleaning schedule (bravo!).  So I'm jumping ahead a bit but I promise I'm still going to post a roundup of all the useful stuff you … [Read more...]

Parenting Happy Kids

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photo via The Busy Budgeting Mama   I've got something very exciting to announce: "The meal plan is coming! The meal plan is coming!".  My friend Mel (who's a healthy cooking rock star) is currently training and raising funds for Team in Training.  So I suggested she make a 12 week meal plan, which I'll put up here along with a link where everyone can show their appreciation by donating to help fight blood cancer (completely at  your discretion and no minimum amount required).  … [Read more...]